Books Beauty Bling

Have you ever had one of those days where the irritations just kind of stacked up? Today was a bit of that for me. I left the house a good 15 minutes earlier than usual this morning, and a streetlight at a major intersection was out, making me actually late for work. My work name tag has mysteriously gone missing from my desk, where I always keep it just under my computer monitor. Several items I was waiting on and expecting to be delivered today have been "delayed," and the mailman didn't take the two items I had out for pickup when he delivered the mail - even though I've been told, by him, to simply put them out and tape a note to them asking for USPS pickup. To top it off, an expense check I've been waiting for was mailed out last week - but not to my home address, which we are asked to put on the form itself - it was mailed somehow to an old address, even though my employee file is updated, and the address on my paystubs is my current address. So, I'll be...

Confession time! I was not always a makeup person. Growing up, I wasn't really allowed to wear a lot of makeup, but also, having small, hooded eyes, I struggled with the dark, smudgy liner of the 90s. My inability to recreate looks from Teen, Seventeen, and YM left me believing I just wasn't someone who could "do," makeup. Like it was some mystical gift bestowed only upon some, and I had been deemed unworthy. So, I went through high school, either not wearing any makeup (also attended an all girls' school so, not so bad,) or wearing pretty awful makeup that was not super flattering on me. Maybe this is a right of passage for teens in general, although I can certainly say I did not have You Tube tutorials when I was a teenager. No, ma'am. My senior year, while preparing for our production of Guys & Dolls, one of my super talented classmates offered to do my eye makeup for dress rehearsal. I could NOT believe how glamorous I felt! Dark, smokey eyes, lush ...

One of my favorite makeup products is mascara, and because my eyes tend to water, I love waterproof mascara. I know, it's not great for your lashes, yada yada yada. I'mma be honest, I don't really care. =X My current go-to is Too Faced Better Than Sex waterproof formula. So, when I saw Too Faced makes a product specially to remove waterproof mascara, I was in. Basically, this is an oil on a stiff mascara brush that you apply directly to your lashes. This means you're not wasting a ton of product soaking off tough to remove mascara. The trick to get this to really work well is to apply it, and let it sit for a bit so the oil can break down the makeup. To be honest, I can't believe someone didn't think of this sooner, because it's so smart. I forgot to take before/during/after photos, but this is definitely part of my makeup removing regimen, and I have found it incredibly helpful when removing my mascara without tearing out all my lashes. Speaking of s...

Hello again friends. I know - I've been basically terrible at this blog.  I've got a ton of excuses I can use, but honestly? I just didn't have it in me, and I didn't make the time to force myself to keep on track. Sorry, I promise it's not you - it's me. So, what have I been doing instead of writing? A lot of things, and also not a lot of things. I'm gonna focus on fun things though - like my trip to Jamaica. This is the second year I've gone to Jamaica for Hanson's Back to the Island event, and much like last year, it was a blast. Piña Coladas all day erryday, sunshine, ocean, Hanson concerts, relaxing with one of my best friends, and meeting new friends from across the U.S. Also, I wore a romper. I know, I'm shocked too. I kind of love this romper, but ya'll my real issue with the romper, the bathroom break: the struggle is real. I'm shocked really that I took so few pictures this year, but honestly, I was having such a grea...

Oh, friends. 2016 was A YEAR for me, and not a great one. While there were certainly ups, the downs were way down, and I've been driving the struggle bus just trying to get through the days. I know that 2017 will still hold grief for me, losing my mom isn't simply going to go away, but I am hopeful I can continue putting one foot in front of the other and not simply survive 2017.  I want to truly live this year. This will mean some difficult changes for me, I know. In truth, those changes scare me. Change is unknown, and uncomfortable, and a little scary, especially when it's in terms of your own life - habits, views, behaviors etc. I know it will take time, and that's another struggle for me - patience. I'm endlessly patient with other people, but with myself? I somehow expect the rules of the universe to not apply - that the moment I decide a change will happen that it will come into being - like a movie montage of all the hard work that goes into that change, o...

I gotta spill. I really hate cleaning my makeup brushes. It's so tedious, and time consuming, am I right? When I was in Makeup School, we had to clean our brushes between each makeup application. So, I definitely used a professional grade brush cleaner which I was able to buy at a discount in the school's store. I also got a discount at two local professional beauty shops, and that was awesome, but once I stopped doing makeup on the reg, I stopped shelling out for the professional grade stuff. For a long time I would use baby shampoo, and then I was a fan of Beauty Blender's cleaner in both the solid form and liquid form, because it was pretty easy to use without over using product. However, both of those, and even sometimes the professional cleaner would take a bit to dry (I used to use B urman Industries Cleaner , and it was quick drying). Plus, it felt like it took FOR-EV-ER to get all the makeup out, and rinse the brush clean, then fix the bristles, and then I'd...

"And then, I'm going to rattle the stars." -  Sarah J. Maas ,  Heir of Fire Celaena Sardothian is the famed Assassin of Adarlan. When we meet her, in Sarah J. Maas' Throne of Glass, she is imprisoned in a salt mine, serving a sentence for her crimes. At times, Celaena can be a bit difficult to like. She's short tempered, and violent, and doesn't like being told what to do. She can be impetuous, and rash, and often, especially in the first novel, does things that might make you shake your head and say, "Oh, Celaena. Why?" She's also incredibly smart, fiercely loyal to her friends, and basically an overall badass. Her fighting skills reminded me a bit of Katsa from Kristin Cashore's Graceling.  There are currently five published novels, and four novellas that help fill in some background information on our lovely assassin. I think one of my favorite things about Celaena, and this series is the depth of character development we get to s...